This was the challenge of the W3 Prompt #191 today:
Write a poem of 10 lines or fewer that places someone—or something—in a delightfully improbable location. Think sharks in a bathtub, a dragon in a bar, or any unexpected presence where it clearly doesn’t belong.
Surprise us. Amuse us.
Happy writing!You can read all about it here: https://skepticskaddish.com/2025/12/24/w3-prompt-191-weave-written-weekly/
My first thought went to putting famous people into improbable circumstances – Sigmund Freud at a political convention came to mind. After a promising start with:
“You’ve heard of Einstein at the beach
And mermaids singing each to each …”
… and then it just went nowhere. After a few more ideas that plunged in the brick wall and hit the ocean depths I turned to a a very proper Edwardian butler (think Downton Abbey) amid a waddle of penguins in Antarctica and a lyric poet (not Wordsworth) treating a flock of sheep to a reading.
Butler to the Penguins
In the Antarctic, where emperors waddle all day,
Stands Henry the butler, with silvered tray.
Immaculate tails and spotless white gloves,
His voice soft and soothing as murmuring doves.
“A cucumber sandwich, perhaps, sir?” he’ll say,
“With Darjeeling – or Earl Grey – to chase chill away.”
The penguins just honk and go sliding on ice,
Quite unmoved by his locution precise.
Undaunted, he bows in immaculate dress:
“Then watercress, maybe? It’s terribly fresh.”
The Lyric Poet to the Flock
C. Langley Dunwood, a poet of note,
Clutched a slim volume of poems she wrote.
On the hillside she read, voice quivering deep,
To a flock of sheep who had paused from their sleep.
“Luminous! Liminal!” – so she had heard,
(Praise so generous it seemed almost absurd.)
The ruminant sheep kept nibbling the grass,
And C. Langley’s no clue she’s an absolute ass.
The featured image is The Gathering by David McEown https://davidmceown.com/emperors Take a look at his site where he has many gorgeous paintings of penguins.
Josie — love how in both of these the humans are trying so hard while the animals couldn’t care less. Totally relatable 😄
Much love,
David
P.S. Your W3 is now live!
What fun!
hi, Josie!
Mazal tov! Nolcha has selected you as our new “Poet of the Week” (PoW) for this week’s W3 prompt.
Please contact me as soon as possible at:
DVDBGMLNY at GMAIL dot COM
I don’t have your email address, and I’d like to send you instructions for hosting. Your prompt goes live on Wednesday morning, so I’d like to be in touch with you before then.
Thanks so much,
David
Crikey! Am contacting you right now.
Josie, I think both your poems are absolutely BRILLIANT! 👏👏
Kind of you to say so. They were fun to work on, that is for sure.
I can see why your mind went to penguins and the butler brilliant write Josie 😆
It’s not the most original of ideas!
Josie this is a great twofer! The butler is classic!
Thanks. It was fun to write. But of course – the butler and penguin is a bit of a cliche! And the loopy poet declaiming to the beasts and animals has also been done already.!
I love all the fitting vocabulary!
Nice one. Interesting take.
Poor poets….
Poor sheep. Poor penguins!
Very good, Josie. Penguins are very deserving of poetry. And so are sheep, in a totally different way. That is a smashing painting. Happy Christmas!
Penguins are good as choccy bics too.
(I’m not sure anyone deserves the poetry of C. Langley Dunwood. Let alone harmless sheep quietly grazing in the fields by night.)
Cheers to you and G, all the cats, and other creatures in your glowing orbit!
No living creature should be subjected to lyric poetry against their will. It’s in the Geneva Convention.
Cucumber and watercress sandwiches though…